The Đà Lạt Plateau (also called Lâm Viên Plateau, Lang Biang Plateau) is a

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

in southeastern

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

. At its centre is the city of

Da Lat Da Lat (also written as Dalat, vi, Đà Lạt; ), is the capital of Lâm Đồng Province and the largest city of the Central Highlands region in Vietnam. The city is located above sea level on the Langbian Plateau. Da Lat is one of the mo ...

. Several mountains in this area rise to over , the highest being ( Ede: ; vi, đỉnh núi Chư Yang Sin) at .

Avifauna

The plateau has been designated as an

Endemic Bird Area An Endemic Bird Area (EBA) is an area of land identified by BirdLife International as being important for habitat-based bird conservation because it contains the habitats of restricted-range bird species (''see below for definition''), which are the ...

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

. The plateau comprises a multitude of habitats for birds. Restricted-range species such as the

Vietnamese crested argus The Vietnamese crested argus (''Rheinardia ocellata'') is a large and spectacular peafowl-like species of bird in the pheasant family with dark-brown-spotted black and buff plumage, a heavy pink bill, brown irises and blue skin around the eyes ...

(''Rheinardia ocellata''), short-tailed scimitar babbler (''Jabouilleia danjoui''), black-hooded laughingthrush (''Garrulax milleti''), white-cheeked laughingthrush (''Garrulax vassali''),

collared laughingthrush The collared laughingthrush (''Trochalopteron yersini'') is a species of bird in the family Leiothrichidae. It is endemic to Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests and subtropical or tropical high-al ...

(''Garrulax yersini''), grey-crowned crocias (''crocias langbianis'') and yellow-billed nuthatch (''Sitta solangiae'') inhabit the tropical montane broadleaf evergreen forest, the notable exception being the Vietnamese greenfinch (''Carduelis monguilloti''), which prefers pine forest. The varying altitudes in the plateau also form a congenial environment for birds that are suited to low altitude (up to 1,650 m) such as the black-hooded laughingthrush and the grey-crowned crocias, which rarely ventures above 1,450 m, while the collared laughingthrush often inhabits the higher peaks of the region, reaching above 1,500 m.

Mammals

The Bidoup Núi Bà National Park, which is located in the northeastern section of the Đà Lạt Plateau, contains a significant number of mammalian species, totaling some 36 species of small mammals. Some of the notable creatures in this total include

treeshrew The treeshrews (or tree shrews or banxrings) are small mammals native to the tropical forests of South and Southeast Asia. They make up the entire order Scandentia, which split into two families: the Tupaiidae (19 species, "ordinary" treeshrew ...

s (Tupaiidae), roundleaf bats (Hipposideridae),

horseshoe bat Horseshoe bats are bats in the family Rhinolophidae. In addition to the single living genus, ''Rhinolophus'', which has about 106 species, the extinct genus ''Palaeonycteris'' has been recognized. Horseshoe bats are closely related to the Old ...

s (Rhinolophidae), squirrels (Sciuridae),

bamboo rat The bamboo rats are four species of rodents of the subfamily Rhizomyinae. They are the sole living representatives of the tribe Rhizomyini. All are found in South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia. The species are: *The Chinese bamboo rat, ''R ...

s (Spalacidae) and

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...

s (Hystricidae).

Weather

Đà Lạt Plateau is known for its mild and constant temperatures, which vary very slightly throughout the year. The average temperature in April, the warmest month, is 26.3 °C.January, the coldest month, sees an average temperature of 10.5 °C. October is the wettest month of the year.

References

Landforms of Vietnam Plateaus of Asia Landforms of Lâm Đồng province {{Vietnam-geo-stub